Slidelined

For the first time since I began working for The Barnstable Patriot I missed the Cape Cod Baseball League All-Star Game.

Kathleen Szmit

Following the CCBL All-Star game online

For the first time since I began working for The Barnstable Patriot I missed the Cape Cod Baseball League All-Star Game. It wasn’t by choice. Instead, my car broke down several miles shy of Doran Park in Bourne, ending my baseball quest and sending my glaring “check engine” light and I home where I was forced to follow the game via the Internet.

For me, it was a real test of my personal mettle. In the years that I’ve been covering sports for the Patriot I have delighted in the different All-Star games, including those held on Cape Cod and those played at Fenway Park.

I’ve looked forward to taking just the right shot of adorable young fans eagerly holding out baseballs, bats, hats and programs to be autographed by equally adorable wide-eyed young baseball players from beloved teams, blissfully unaccustomed to being hero-worshipped.

I’ve watched home run derbies with a smile on my face as I listened to fans count the runs aloud before cheering for the heavy-hitting winner. Then, come game time, I’ve tucked myself either into a space near a dugout or into a photo pit at Fenway, excited to look through my lens as I try my best to capture the thrill of the event as it unfolds.

Looking through the hundreds of images taken has also been a pleasure, especially if I caught a moment between All-Stars that no one else did, such as a high five, a fist bump, or a point or a wave at mom and dad.

Not this year.

This year I followed the game mostly via Twitter, where tech-savvy interns and CCBL staffers posted photos and offered game updates. Before you ask, my ‘net plan doesn’t do live streaming well. Following through social media also helped soften the sting of missing out better than a live stream might have.

Through a slew of posts I saw the smiling faces of raffle winners, players taking batting practice, swinging away in the home run derby and signing autographs; the kitchen crew preparing for a crowd, the scouts behind the plate and even the actual crowd.

It was great but it wasn’t the same as actually being there. Not even close.

While the photos were great and the updates helpful, following the action virtually from my humble living room lacked, well, everything. There were no shouts from the crowd, no cracks of the bats, no mid-inning music, no tantalizing scents of goodies from the concession stand and no camera shutter clicking in my ear.

It lacked energy and excitement, camaraderie and the pure joy that is summer baseball on Cape Cod. Sure, my chair is comfy, but it’s not at a ballpark.

In this world of telecommuting, working remotely, communicating across the wifi signals or summing up life in 140 characters or less, there is something to be said for actually being there. That’s why I will be there next year, even if I have to leave my car behind and walk.